ScreenFish

where faith and film are intertwined

justice

Finding Kendrick Johnson – A life that matters

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“My baby’s life matters.”

Unless we choose willful ignorance, we should all know that Black people in America have faced violence for a very long time. Sometimes that has happened at the hands of police. Sometimes it has happened in lynchings. But we need to remember that those who experience such events are individuals—someone’s friend or child. Finding Kendrick Johnson puts a face on one such death that has failed to find any closure of justice. Director Jason Pollock earlier told the story of Michael Brown who was killed in Ferguson, Missouri in Stranger Fruit. Like that film, Finding Kendrick Johnson gives us the story of this death mainly through the eyes of the family.

Seventeen year old Kendrick Johnson’s body was found rolled up in a gym mat at his high school in Valdosta. Georgia. After a four year investigation, no one has been charged in the killing. In fact, the initial findings were that his death was accidental. This film looks at the facts of the case that makes such a finding seem ludicrous. The US Justice Department sent investigators because two persons of interest in the case were sons of an FBI agent. As we see the evidence we sense there could well be a deep cover-up in the case. One of the DOJ investigators tells of how shocked he was that no charges were ever made. A forensic pathologist hired by the family is deeply critical of the handling of the case by the local medical examiners (who somehow lost the body’s organs).

All of this is put into context with a history of lynching of black people. Is that an apt issue to bring into the film? That is up to each viewer to decide. I can easily imagine scenarios with the facts of the film that would qualify this as a lynching. But I can also imagine scenarios that wouldn’t qualify a definition of lynching. But to be sure, because this involves a black man, such a possibility needs to be considered.

Even more important is the evidence that this case was not initially treated as important. We are asked to consider if the body had been of a white student, if the investigation would have been the same. The systemic racism that can lead to the victim’s race making a case more or less important is a key part of this film. The fact that his family had to go great lengths to try to get answers speaks to a system that may not be interested in justice for all people.

It is important that I watched and reacted to this film as a white person. I would expect that a Black person might well have a much different experience of the film. It is not that I’m skeptical of the film’s facts. What happened to Kendrick Johnson was terrible. What happened to his family is heartbreaking. That so many errors were made (either intentionally or through incompetence) adds to the tragedy in the lack of closure for those involved. But I’m not sure I can make the same implied conclusions that the film makes. That could well be tied to my White experience of the world. That understanding could create blind spots for me as I watch the film.

Finding Kendrick Johnson is showing in select theaters.

Photos courtesy of Gravitas Films.

The Ballad of Esequiel Hernández – A Story to Remember

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Corridos are Mexican folk ballads. Sometimes those ballads are used to relate history that is deemed important. The Ballad of Esequiel Hernández is essentially a film corrido that recalls the 1997 shooting of an 18 year old high school student on the US-Mexico border by US Marines. The Emmy-nominated film, directed by Kieran Fitzgerald and narrated by Tommy Lee Jones, originally aired on PBS in 2008, but is now arriving on VOD.

Esequiel Hernández lived with his family about 200 yards from the Rio Grande. He and his siblings were born here. One evening while herding his family’s goats, he came under suspicion of a group of Marines who were assigned to observe the border as part of the War on Drugs. It should be noted that their mission was to observe and report to law enforcement, not to interdict drug trafficking. But as Esequiel cared for his goats he carried a .22 rifle to deal with coyotes. The fully camouflaged Marines believed he fired at them. They did not immediately return fire, but tracked him over wide area before one of them shot him. Esequiel Hernández became the first American citizen killed by US military on American soil since Kent State in 1970.

The ensuing investigation never led to any charges against the Marines. The film allows us to hear from Border Patrol officials, local law enforcement officials, government officials, and three of the four Marines involved in the incident (only the one who fired the shot failed to take part). The perspective of the film is that justice was not served in this case. It points out that the Marines were probably acting outside their rules of engagements. It also shows that the government and the military quickly closed wagons to prevent what could have become a very bad public image problem. This incident brought an end to the military involvement at the border until recently as the military works on building a border wall.

It’s important to note that the film looks back ten years after the fact, and we are now seeing it another decade later. But even though the events recounted are so far in the past, the themes that are involved continue to be timely. That is where the corrido nature of this story comes into play. We are asked to remember this event—this piece of history—for what it tells us of the ongoing issues we face today.

The most obvious issue is immigration, even though Esequiel Hernández was not an immigrant and the Marines were not tasked with dealing with immigration. They were only there to try to identify drug trafficking. But people of Hispanic heritage anywhere near the border continue to face assumptions about their place in society.

Questions are also raised about the failure of the legal system to bring justice in situations of armed force being used improperly. Neither the civilian legal system or the military system was able or willing to confront the problems involved in this incident. Some in the military even sought to give the shooter a special commendation.

But what struck me as a much more appropriate question for us to consider is the way the Marines tracked Esequiel for a long period. It brings to mind the illogical extensions of stand-your-ground laws that have led to various killings of people of color in recent years. For me, the part of the story that is most disturbing is that this could have been avoided if the Marines had simply stayed where they were.

Some corridos and their stories speak to us through the years. The Ballad of Esequiel Hernández is such a story.

The film is available on iTunes and Amazon.

Wednesday at AFIFest 2019

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There has been a major change at AFI Fest 2019 Presented by Audi. For the last few years, tickets for most screenings and events at the festival were free. This year, the public needs to buy tickets, although there are some films that had free screenings. While the attendance is still good, most screenings are not completely full houses. It’s not cheap to run a festival, so I certainly understand the need for revenue. And AFIFest is the only festival I know of that has offered free screenings of their films. But it has resulted in fewer eyes seeing some of these excellent films.

In Armenia in 2018, Nikol Pashinyan, a former journalist and leader of the political opposition, started a walk to protest the upcoming reelection of the prime minister. A few dozen followers grew to hundreds, then thousands, eventually toppling the government, and making Pashinyan prime minister. I Am Not Alone is a documentary of this Velvet Revolution. Much is archival footage, but it also includes various interviews with many of those involved, including Pashinyan and the Serzh Sargsyan, the prime minister he opposed. Pashinyan was following the teachings of Gandhi as he led this movement with non-violent protests and civil disobedience. It shows how much of the country was resigned to the political situation, but because of the people asserting their ultimate authority, democracy was restored.

Hector Barajas in READY FOR WAR. Photo Credit: Courtesy of SHOWTIME.

Ever since the Clinton Administration, it has been the case that non-citizen military veterans who break a variety of laws (mostly drug related) can be deported. These are people who have often grown up in the US, chose to serve in the military, fought in our wars, and even been wounded in that service. Andrew Renzi’s documentary Ready for War addresses this issue by looking at the stories of three vets who have been deported. Hector Barajas spent 14 years in Tijuana seeking to get back into the US. He started a shelter for other deported vets, and has worked to try to help others make a home or find a way back to their families. Miguel Perez is in an ICE detention center through most of the film, as he and his family seek his release. “El Vet” is a veteran, who when he was deported and knew no one in Mexico or had a job, was recruited by the drug cartels because he had skills that were of value to them—the skills the Army taught him. As the story rotated between the three, some of the issues that come into play are examined. As one person working on behalf of these vets says, “It may be legal, but it’s not just. And it’s definitely not American.” Ready for War will air on Showtime on Nov. 22.

When introducing Tayarisha Poe’s Selah and the Spades the festival programmer noted, “It’s fierce. It’s fun. It makes me not want to go back to high school.” That was a fair assessment. Hardwell School is a toney private academy. All the less than academic aspects of student life are controlled by five “factions” (basically upscaled gangs). These factions cooperated under a truce, but they are also in competition. Selah (Lovie Simone) heads the Spades, the faction that provides all the drugs and alcohol on campus. But it’s the last semester of her senior year, and she has no one to turn the faction over to. Then she meets Paloma (Celeste O’Connor), a new student, and begins to groom her to take over. However, Paloma may not be up to the task—or she may be too up for the task. Amazon Studios has bought the film so it may end up of Prime. They are also working to create a series that is set the world of Hardwell School.

In Beanpole, two women in post-war Leningrad seek to rebuild their lives. Iya, a very tall young woman, works as a nurse in a veterans hospital. She had a concussion during the war and now sometimes “freezes up”—suffers petit mal like seizures. During one of these, she suffocates the child. When Masha, a soldier being discharged, arrives, we discover the child was hers. Iya was taking care of the child for her. Masha also goes to work at the hospital. Masha, who is now infertile, pressures Iya to replace the child she has lost. Iya wants nothing to do with sex. Meanwhile Masha has a suitor with a connected family. This is a film set in a dismal time and place. The two women are looking for any bit of hope of new life and happiness. But keep in mind this is a Russian film. Do you know any happy Russian endings? Beanpole is Russia’s official Oscar submission for International Feature consideration. It will arrive in US theaters in late January.

Beauty and the Dogs – Persisting in a #MeToo World

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“And yet she persisted” is a political statement in the US. It speaks to women seeking a voice to speak to power. But a woman’s persistence takes on a much deeper importance in the Tunisian film Beauty and the Dogs.

University student Miriam (Miriam Al Ferjani) goes to a party where she meets Youssef (Ghanem Zrelli). They go off for a walk. Next, we see her running, with him behind her. In time we see he is trying to comfort her and help her. While they were walking, policemen drove up, took Miriam and raped her.  Moving between clinic, hospital, and police stations, Miriam and Youssef try to document what happened to file a complaint. The night turns into an ever-greater nightmare as Miriam must face bureaucratic hurdles and hostility from those who we think should be her protectors.

The first third of the movie reminded me a bit of the Romanian film The Death of Mr. Lasarescu.  Like the character in that film, Mariam wants help, but faces proper procedures that override simple compassion. First, she is told she can’t be treated because she has no identification (her purse was taken by the rapists), then that there is no one who can examine her, then when the proper doctor is found, she’s told she must first go to the police to report the rape (which, of course, she is afraid to do.)

Her encounters with the police take this into even darker territory. There she is met with disbelief, indifference, hostility, and eventually physical and emotional threats. The first reaction of the police to an accusation against other officers is to circle the wagons. But when the police involved in the rape find her at the station, it becomes even more dangerous for both Miriam and Youssef. The police do everything they can to prevent her from moving forward with this complaint. As the night wears on, Miriam faces exhaustion along with the trauma of rape. Yet, she is not willing to let the police put this aside. She is determined to demand justice for what she has been through.

This story, based on actual events, but with significant artistic license, is a reminder that victims of rape often face all the trials that Miriam faces here. We also know that this is a story that is not limited to far away places. We live in a #MeToo world. For many women justice has been delayed or denied for terrible things they have had to face. It is only now that women are banding together to persist, as Miriam does here, to demand that their voices be heard, their pain acknowledged, and justice be done.

Photos courtesy of Oscilloscope Laboratories

In the Fade – Justice? Revenge?

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“They’ll get their punishment. I promise you.”

Justice. Revenge. Are they the same? Are they even related? In the Fade from Fatih Akin is the story of a search for justice, and what happens when that justice is denied. In the Fade is Germany’s official Oscar entry for Best Foreign Language Film.

Katja (Diane Kruger) has a wonderful life with her husband Nuri and young son Rocco. Her world is shattered when Nuri and Rocco are killed in a terrorist bombing. She can barely make it through the funeral, and her life is spiraling downward until two neo-Nazis are charged with the crime. From there on, her only mission is to see justice done.

The film plays out in three acts, entitled “The Family” (meeting the family, the bombing, the grief), “Justice” (the trial), and “The Sea” (Katja’s actions after the trial). Katja’s grief is the driving force through it all. At times her grief leads her to self-destructive behavior. It is only when she has hope that the killers will be punished that she seems to have a reason to live. But what would happen if things didn’t work out in the trial?

In press notes Akin (who was born in Germany to Turkish immigrant parents) notes that the story is inspired by xenophobic killings by members of the National Socialist Underground. But he chose to make a survivor (Katja) the empathetic center of the film. There is no attempt to justify the murderers’ perspective. Rather we remain totally focused on Katja and her emotional struggle before, during and after the trial. It is in that struggle that Akin is able to take us into the darkness of revenge.

How do we differentiate between justice and vengeance? We often think of the two as almost synonymous. However, justice connotes a high ideal—even a biblical ideal. It is a call to bring things back into alignment. Justice should help to create healing and reconciliation. Revenge, on the other hand, may seem like it is making something right, but in fact it only serves to create more pain and suffering. Revenge may seem like an imperfect form of justice, in that it pays back pain for pain. In the end it is only a counterfeit.

The emotional journey we take with Katja eventually takes us to some very dark possibilities as she responds to injustice. Even in this she is driven more by her grief than by the ideal of justice. The combination of grief, anger, and vengeance leads to a result that may seem inevitable, but fails to leave us feeling that justice or healing has been achieved.

Photos courtesy of Magnolia Pictures

When Justice Isn’t Just – Racial Justice Still Eludes

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In case you haven’t noticed, there are still race issues in America. The most recent way this has flared up revolves around the number of African Americans killed by police—often unarmed. But there is much more to the problem than that. When Justice Isn’t Just tries to show a few of the issues around the question of race. However, its forty-two minutes is not nearly enough to truly be effective.

The film proves three chapters for consideration: Unarmed, focusing on the police killings of various African American; Black on Black Crime, speaking of the way that issue is often a deflection of real consideration of the problem; and The Legal System¸ which looks at the ways African Americans and poor people face uphill battles in court. The film is clear in its presentation of the core issues.

I think most people will have seen a good deal of the news video footage built around the police shootings and the protests that often followed. The first half of the film almost feels like a Black Lives Matter commercial. I know that comment will attract some people and repel others. I would hope that those who may be averse to that concept would be willing to watch and hear just what those involved with BLM have to say. Sadly, I think this film will mostly be preaching to the choir—a not uncommon problem for documentaries trying to speak to social ills.

For me, there is not much new information here. But then, then as a part of a Pro-Reconciliation and Anti-Racism denomination, I have been in discussions about these ideas frequently. For many others who may not have really stopped to consider the ways justice is often denied to many people in our society, this film might serve as a first step in your consideration.